Spain: A Right to Bare Arms but Not Much More

By The Associated Press

April 22, 2015

Spain’s Supreme Court has ruled that nudism is not a fundamental right by backing a town’s decision to prohibit it and impose fines. In the first decision of its kind, the court announced Tuesday that the town, Castell-Platja d’Aro, on the northeastern Costa Brava, has the right to ban nudism. The town wanted to ban nudism on its beaches in 2009, saying they were used by families. The ban was challenged by nudist groups who said nudism was a constitutional right, but the Supreme Court rejected that argument. The town said Wednesday that its regulations allowed it to issue fines of up to 300 euros, or about $320, to nudists on certain beaches. Topless sunbathing is still allowed, and nudism remains legal elsewhere in Spain, which has some 450 nudist beaches.